CHAPTER IV. 



The Ideal Pigeon House 



A quiet, well-ventilated and comfortable house is 

 necessary for pigeons. In selecting a site great care 

 should be taken to secure one convenient for attending 

 to the daily wants of the birds. A well-drained, sandy 

 and gravelly soil with a gradual slope to the south 

 makes an ideal location for the house and the accom- 

 panying yards or flies. Low, damp places should be 

 avoided, especially where water is liable to stand after 

 rain. In such places the water soon becomes polluted 

 by the droppings of the birds and sooner or later in- 

 duces disease and disaster. Buildings facing the 

 south are most desirable. It is sometimes permissible 

 to have buildings facing the east, but a southern ex- 

 posure is preferable. There should be no obstruc- 

 tions which shut out the morning sun. It is also 

 desirable to have evergreens or other trees and build- 

 ings to protect the site from the north and west winds. 



Never place the house on the ground. It not only 

 induces dampness, but furnishes a harbor for rats, 

 weasels, minks and other animals. The house should 

 be set on a pier of bricks, stone or wood, 12 to 18 

 inches from the ground. There can be no hope of 

 success in raising squabs if such animals as men- 

 tioned above have free access to the breeding 

 quarters. They will not only kill the squabs, but 

 frighten the parent birds. We know of an instance 

 where rats killed 20 squabs in a small pen in a 

 single night. The old birds were so frightened that 

 •only a few squabs were produced for several weeks 



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